Community antenna television (“CATV”) networks have been used for more than four decades to deliver television programming to a large number of subscribers. Increasingly, CATV networks are used by providers to provide data services to subscribers. For example, cable modems used in a broadband cable modem termination system (“CMTS”) compete with digital subscriber lines (“DSL”) and DSL modems used therein, which are typically implemented and supported by telephone companies. DSL service is typically provided over the same wires as a residence's telephone service.
Cable modems, on the other hand, use the CATV cabling over which CATV programming is provided. Some cable television and cable data providers compete with telephone companies by offering telephony services over the CATV network using Internet protocol. This is known in the art as ‘voice over IP’ (“VoIP”).
Conventional telephony networks provide electrical current from a central location to a user's telephony equipment for dial tone and off-hook signaling, for example. The power supplied from the telephone company's central location is provided from a utility company's power lines at the central office location under normal conditions, and is typically supplemented by a diesel generator in case off site power from the power company is interrupted. Thus, power for telephony service is always available; in an emergency, the local 911 operator can always be reached.
Although a CATV network often supplies some AC power for network devices, a subscriber's device or devices are typically powered by household AC current. Since most consumers do not have a diesel generator to back up off-site power supplied by a local utility company, batteries are typically used to provide a backup in case off-site power is lost. This allows a VoIP-over-CATV subscriber to place a telephone call during a power outage, including placing a call to a 911 operator in case an emergency situation requires contacting police, fire, paramedic, or medical personnel.
To increase reliability and reduce physical size, cable modem and other devices that support VoIP-over-CATV do not use the standard dry-cell batteries widely known to consumers in the familiar AAA, AA, C, D and 9-volt configurations. This is because rechargeable batteries are used so that immediately following a power outage, reasonable assurances are provided that the batteries will be operative. While power is being supplied from an off-site utility company, charge on the back-up batteries is being maintained or recharged. However, to maintain quality control and to facilitate particular size and shapes of devices, proprietary battery packs, preferably lithium ion, are provided by equipment manufactures to cable operators.
Depending on the price point of a given communication device, different size batteries may be specified. Typically, a device's housing is designed based on a particular battery configuration of a given size. Therefore, the device is typically constrained to always using the same battery size and configuration.
Communication device housings, as well as electronic device houses generally, typically include a compartment or well that receives and locates a battery or battery pack. Typically, the battery is inserted into the compartment/well and retaining ‘door’ or cover is placed over the compartment. The door/cover typically is snapped or screwed into place over the compartment and serves to retain the battery in the battery compartment. However, with respect to a snap-in door, if the device is dropped, and the door pops open, the battery may pop out of the device's battery compartment and become electrically disconnected. This scenario could present a problem if the user of the electrical device is in the middle of a critical operation.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for a device housing that can accept multiple battery sizes so that a user can specify the battery size based on his or her needs. Furthermore, there is a need for a battery compartment that does not require a frame, which is an extra structure within a electronics device housing, housings which are typically molded plastic or formed metal, to locate and retain a battery.